Photograph
by Reishii-Chan
Summary: When we take pictures, it's to remember an event that normally was important. But for Kagome, it's a way of living. Until a taiyoukai comes along and completely messes with her opinions.
1. Snap

_A/N:_ Hey, yes, I'm back. Here's a pairing I need to experiment with, an idea that budded randomly, so I had to write it down. The chapters will be fairly short, and I will _definitely_ be done this _very_ shortly. I will install the next chapters once I have completely finished the story, which, at the progress I am making now, shouldn't be long at all.

楽しむ!

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_**Photograph

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**_

Kagome sat on the ledge of the well by the old God Tree, feet dangling from the sides while her fingers rested on the old wood that was beginning to rot away.

'_Dammit, Inuyasha, why are you so late today?' _she thought furiously, trying to quell her frustration by spotting as many different types of birds she could find. She spotted two or three, heard their distinctive calls, and with practice from recent times she mimed them.

"Come here, little birdie," she called out as she continued to whistle, gazing as she watched the birds start to flock around a tree fifty paces from her. "Come on, I'm not going to hurt you."

As she continued whistling, she removed a bag of seeds from her knapsack carefully, and chucked them in front of her. "Go on, eat up!" The birds soon began to hoard around her, pecking at the ground, while she watched contently at the scenery before her. Being quiet and keeping her moves discreet, she snaked her hand into the knapsack once more to pull out her digital camera. With professionalism, she snapped a few photos, before resting the camera in her lap and gazing at the sky.

'_Inuyasha, it's well past noon. Where the heck are you?_' pouting, she scanned the area for more possible photo spots, and soon, she was so immersed in her work that everything seemed to be a beautiful canvas worth saving for lifetimes. Kagome snapped pictures of the God Tree, clips of the green trees with a bit of blue sky, followed by the ray of the sun that would appear spread out in a kaleidoscope of colors, the grass, some after thoughts of the well itself, before she suddenly felt like everything was worth a memory.

She started venturing just a bit further on the outside of the clearing, surrounded by thin interwoven trees, snapping pictures wherever she thought she could, capturing wildlife and how she remembered that this part of the era would, in a few centuries, be modified before giving way to her own city and buildings and pollution. So, as a reminder if she never was able to return to the Sengoku Jidai, everything was memorialized on her camera.

So caught up was she on her work that the presence of the taiyoukai did not daunt her in the least, until his claws were on her neck and on her pressure point.

Instantly, she froze, dropping the camera to the ground with a muted thud. Eyes wide, she attempted to speak, but the pressure on her neck prevented her from doing so.

"Miko," came Sesshoumaru's cold voice, his grip becoming a bit rougher, "what is that flash you keep producing? Some sort of purification spell?"

Had Kagome not been on the verge of choking, she would have laughed. As it was, the demon lord relaxed his grip enough to allow her to respond. "No. It's a camera."

Curiosity piqued, he asked, "And what is a ca-mer-a?" The sound was foreign to him, that much was clear.

Realizing he had put pressure on the fragile human again, he relaxed his grip enough so that his hand was just gently clasping her neck. Butterflies stirred in her stomach. Kagome said unsteadily, "It's an object that lets you take pictures." Knowing he didn't know what a picture was, she elaborated. "A picture is an object that has the image of the object or person on it. It comes out on paper if you want it to."

"Show me." He commanded, allowing his hand to slip away, his claws grazing her skin to cause her breath to hitch.

"Um. Okay." She wheeled around, picked up her camera, and aimed it at his face. "Say cheese." His initial reaction wasn't quite what she was expecting; for the taiyoukai became rather threatened with the idea of the unknown object being pointed at him specifically, and in turn he raised his hand to swat it out of her hands.

"Hey!" she shouted indignantly, stomping her foot. "That's an eight-hundred dollar camera!"

"It posed a threat, I simply got rid of it." He replied without concern about the price.

"It didn't pose a threat at all! You had better not have broken it!" With fury she stomped toward where her camera had been rudely chucked, stooped down to pick it up, but realized phantom hands had already snatched it away from her. When Kagome looked up, there was Sesshoumaru, camera in his hand held in a precarious way, inspecting it, for what she assumed to be sutras or any assortment of demon weapons that could potentially harm him.

"Give that back!" she demanded, walking up to him and attempting to take it from his hand. A chilling glare was her answer.

Wordlessly, he stuck it out to her.

Perplexed, she canted her head to the side. '_He's just going to give it to me?' _she thought.

"Miko."

"What?"

"Show me how it works."

'_Well, I did that already, but you flipped out._' She thought sourly.

Exasperated, she gently retrieved her item and proceeded to make sure it was still alive. To her relief, it still worked, so she turned it on with a click and started instructing him what to do with it.

"You see this button?" she pointed to the button on the right hand side at the top. "It turns it on so it's...accessible. Now this button allows you to focus on an object, so you press this one once you've aimed it and then you have your picture."

When she slightly turned to make sure he was paying attention, she was suddenly aware of how close he was. The proximity was to say in the least invigorating, the feel of his hot breath just slightly fanning her ear was enough to make her loose her balance, not to mention the smell of him was absolutely intoxicating. And if she searched even further, she would have assumed he was so intent on the camera in her palms he wasn't even remotely conscious of how close their bodies were.

Ignoring this, she returned to her explanation. "Now, what you do, you take it with both hands, aim it, and then just press the button like I showed you." She tentatively handed him the camera, which she hoped he wouldn't throw away again. "Would you like to try?"

He contemplated this in silence, maybe debating if it would flash and he'd loose his vision, or perhaps he'd disintegrate into dust. Either which, he was obviously curious enough and took the camera from her hand, fingers once again brushing the soft flesh of her palm to send her head spinning the circles. '_Stop that!_' Kagome yelled at her body furiously. '_Just quit it with the hormones!_'

The taiyoukai placed the camera in his one hand, mimicked Kagome's movements, and watched as he captured her head and upper torso in the photo. "If you want a full body picture, step away a bit."

Internally, the demon lord thought it was suitable the size that it was and repeated mockingly, "Say cheese."

Nonplussed, Kagome smiled a bit awkwardly, and watched as the flash went off and little black dots congealed her vision. After she thought he was content with one photo, she asked, "Would you like me to take a picture of you now?"

He didn't answer at first, continued to look at the picture he had just took, scrutinizing for flaws and defects and anything that may seem witch-like. Unfortunately, and a bit irritatingly, he found no such problems with the picture which discomforted him a bit, and quietly assented to the miko's suggestion. She was perfectly fine from the looks of it, he should be fine also.

She stepped back a few paces, planning on a full-scale picture, and aimed the camera with practiced ease. Her throat and heart clenched when she viewed the image of him in the camera's lens, with his ethereal appearance, dressed in his full regalia, silver hair somewhat stirred from the soft, almost nonexistent breeze, and the passive look on his pale face that was accentuated by his markings and amber eyes.

Kagome tried to get a grip on the matter, snapped the photo. Promptly, the demon lord became frantic as he searched for the miko's neck blindly. When he did find her however, his one clawed hand again gripping her neck, his voice was pure venom when he blindly glared at her. "What did you do to my vision wench?"

Kagome struggled to keep calm, failed, and told him earnestly. "It's just the flash effects! It'll wear off in a few seconds, don't worry!" She felt sort of guilty; she should have known his vision would've been more susceptible to bright lights.

He didn't relinquish his hold on her until his sight was fully restored, bothered only by tiny black and green dots only when he looked too fast. He peered down at the miko's frightened expression, her brown eyes wide and her face turning an unhealthy blue hue. He also realized her legs were dangling off of the ground. Unceremoniously he dropped her to the ground, while she clawed at her neck and started wheezing for breath, but other than the obvious display of discomfort she did nothing to complain nor made any noise.

When Kagome regained her balance, she picked up the camera she had dropped, glad to find it still in one piece and working order, and viewed the picture she took. Gasping, she almost dropped the camera again at the picture that was not the demon lord she was seeing in front of her.

"What is it miko?" he asked stoically, coming to slide beside her as if he hadn't almost killed her, to view the picture over her shoulder.

"It-it's not you." Kagome stammered, wondering how he even had the ability to conjure up his true image before the flash went off.

"Stupid human," Sesshoumaru scolded, looking at the picture a bit more intently than he'd prefer, "it is me. That is my true form. I am just in a human shell." His one clawed hand reached out to point at the picture of him in his full demon glory, hackles raised at the top of his neck, fur wild in the wind, fangs protruding from the mouth, one paw missing from the other three, tongue flapping about outside of the mouth while his red eyes were wild with untamed fury.

"O-oh," Kagome said, forcing her mind to get rid of the thoughts of what he could do to her in that state. Quickly, she switched to another photo.

"Why do you take pictures of the birds?" he inquired when she started assessing her earlier pictures, startling her because of his genuine curiosity.

Fighting to come up with a proper answer that she'd deem interesting to his person, she replied, "Because, they're beautiful and they deserve to be memorized."

"If so, then why of the landscape itself? I see nothing that comes across beautiful."

Frowning, and becoming peeved because of his arrogance to simple things, Kagome retorted, "It's not going to be here forever you know. I'm saving this so that everyone will be able to see what it looked like when it's finally gone. And there is beauty in it, you've just got to look hard enough for it."

He ignored the last statement, instead targeted the first. "And how would you know it won't be here forever?"

She picked up on his condescending note, and tried to stem a reason that didn't give away her time-traveling abilities. Instead, she thought of something that he would be able to understand. "Everything gives way to change. Places, people, and objects don't often remain the same, for growing purposes. We've evolved into species capable of taking care of ourselves and have been given knowledge to teach the new generations. This, here, won't be like it is for very long. A few centuries it may become another farm field, or possibly a site where you build a long row of homes for people to live in."

The taiyoukai did not respond for several moments, digesting her words, for maybe he knew more than he was letting on.

"I suppose you're right," he conceded finally, but not happily.

She was tempted to say, "Of course," but settled for a nod before aiming her camera at a random location in the dense forestry. When she took the picture, she showed it to him. "See? This is something that's beautiful, just for the simple reasons."

The demon lord did not look convinced. "And, what pray, tell are the 'simple reasons'?"

Biting her lip, she said, "The way the sun's rays filters through the trees that are canvasing above us, creating an illuminated glow that compliments the green tree leaves on the ground and on the tree itself. The way the rocks on the solid ground sparkle and how the trees are woven together in perfect designation as if someone had pre-chosen their birthing spot." She took a moment to calm herself, knowing she was babbling. "It's all just so remarkable. I...don't have this where I live."

Her admittance didn't go unnoticed. "And where would you have to live not to see this each day?" Suddenly, Kagome was again aware of their close quarters, how he seemed to inch nearer and nearer without her noticing. Why was he trying to set her off?

"Um..." knowing she really didn't have a clue as to where she _wouldn't_ see such dense forest, she gave up. "Okay, so, the place I live isn't exactly here...it's a long long way away and hard to find. It just doesn't have a lot of forest."

"And what does it have?" the feel of his hot breath on the back of her neck tickled her alarm bells but she ignored them.

"Homes," she answered, hoping to calm the fluttering in her stomach. "They took away the trees to make a lot of homes."

"Foolishness." He spat. The thought of hundreds of humans settled in one place was probably disturbing for him.

"In a way, yes," Kagome agreed, but refrained from allowing her leniency to show that she agreed fully on his opinion. "But there are so many of us we need a place to live, so it was necessary."

"I'm sure it was." She could have sworn she heard him say, but she paid no mind.

The silence that encompassed them wasn't what Kagome would have thought was awkward, or even tense, it was just comfortable. The birds offered twittering to break them of complete silence, the rustling of trees Kagome thought was mimicking the photographer blood in her, and the sun continued to beam brilliantly through the tree's blanket.

"I smell your hanyou," Sesshoumaru stated, nose wrinkling just in the slightest. Without another word, he pivoted on his heel and began stalking away.

"Um, bye?" Kagome called to the retreating form. Not wasting her breath, she stumbled out of the woods and into the clearing, where she was just in time to meet Inuyasha's bound into the clearing himself.

"You're late." Kagome chided, walking near to him while he shouldered her knapsack.

"Pheh, got held up by the monk." He replied, stopped, sniffed the air. His finger came to point at her, eyes wide. "Why do I smell my brother on you?"

Flushing, Kagome hastily tried to pluck an answer from thin air. "He...um...found me while I was taking pictures..." she could feel the heated glare on the hybrid's face even though she wasn't looking at him.

"You let my brother come near to you!?" he roared, beginning to scan the area in hopes of finding him. "Where is he!? I'll rip his head off!"

"Oh, calm down, Inuyasha." Kagome drawled, gripping his arm and leading him toward Kaede's village. "Let's just return to everyone and forget about it."

"Hmph," grumbled the half-demon as the miko lead him from the clearing.


	2. Moonlight

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**_Photograph

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"Aye, Kagome-san, why ye talking to the demon?" Kaede's voice sounded once everyone settled into the hut for supper.

Kagome sent a scathing look toward Inuyasha's direction before answering. "I was just taking some pictures and he found me. Nothing happened."

The ten leering eyes on her form said that they did not believe her.

Sighing, Kagome gave them a bit more details. "Ugh, fine. I showed him how to take a picture, too, before he got mad at me." She glared at them. "Happy?"

Inuyasha crossed his arms as well as his legs, Shippou mirroring his actions beside him, while Sango and Miroku sipped quietly on their tea in silent admonishment. Inuyasha said, "I don't know why you're always taking these pictures anyways."

"You know I'm in a photography school! I need to practice so I can get a good job with a professional!" Kagome replied hotly.

"Well what good does taking pictures do for you?"

"I hope you know that photography is big lately, and that I'm quite good at it. I'm even recommended for a special program, and this era just happens to be my ticket to that program!"

"Why can't you just take pictures at home?"

Kaede, however, was not finished her interrogation. "And why, dear Kagome-san, would ye even show the demon how to take those pictures?" Inuyasha wasn't impressed he had been ignored.

Being polite to the elder miko, Kagome answered a little less caustically. "He was curious, and I wanted to live. So I let him take a picture and then he went on his merry way." Okay, she knew that wasn't exactly the case, but it was the truth.

"You let my bastard brother take a picture!" Inuyasha hollered, everyone promptly ignoring his expectant outburst. Angrily, he started rummaging through Kagome's knapsack for the aforementioned camera, and when he couldn't find it, his golden eyes settled on her. "Where is it!?"

"Calm down, Inuyasha," reprimanded the miko, picking up the item sitting beside her. "It's right here."

"Hand it over!"

"Osuwari."

_Thump!_

The wooden floor gave way to the subjugation beads with a loud crash that no one could have mistaken for anything else other than the miko sitting her hanyou.

Kaede shook her head somberly. "Would ye wait until you two are outside of the hut next time?"

"Sorry, Kaede-jii-san." Kagome apologized. She started to look over the pictures when a whine was heard from underneath the wooden planks.

When Inuyasha pulled himself from the deep crator, he barked out, "Why the hell did you have to sit me!?"

"Because you were being mean and you don't have to be in the middle of my business 24/7." Kagome replied with a huff. Becoming increasingly tired of the hanyou's actions, the miko stood with her night clothes in hand and turned toward the taijiya. "Would you like to take a bath with me, Sango?"

The demon-slayer shook her head. "No, thanks. I'm going to turn in early."

The monk stood up, staff in hands, serious expression on his face. "Then allow me, Kagome-san, to be bestowed the honor of accompanying--" His words were cut short with a cuff from the taijiya, for which he stood immediately down.

"Lecher," both Inuyasha and Shippou muttered under their breaths.

Kagome smiled and left the hut with her camera in hands, starting toward the hill in the back of the hut to where she remembered spotting a small hotspring. As she trekked through the forestry in the dim moonlight, she made sure to be conscious of everything around her, on high alert for demons lurking about. When she sensed virtually nothing, her guard never wavered, as she continued to relocate the hidden hot spring that she eventually came across. The scene was again enough to take her breath away, with the pale moonlight casting the water a dim purple-blue hue while the rocks placed around the pool to glitter white and silver.

Smiling, Kagome started to dig out her camera, but found it missing. Panicking, and knowing she took it with her. '_Dammit, I must've dropped it!_' Knowing she wouldn't be able to retrieve it in the dark, and having to wait until morning, she tried to abate her anxiety by telling herself it would be safe and fine until she got to it. '_I'll get just Inuyasha to find it when I come back,_' she assured herself.

When she set her clothes on the ground and started removing the ones she had on, a slightly rustling in the trees and the detection of a youkai stopped her actions. '_And, of course, I didn't bring my bow and arrows, either!_' Kagome made a mental note to stop being so stupid. Getting ready to call for help at the first sign of disaster, she sucked in her breath, but it blew out when Sesshoumaru came through the thicket, shimmering white and ghostly in the moonlight.

"Se-Sesshoumaru?" Kagome gasped, thankful she had only removed her school uniform shirt and not the tank underneath. "What're you doing here?"

He didn't answer at first, and neither did she expect him to, but she became anxious when he started toward her in slow, long strides. When he was but an arms-length away, he held out his hand to present her with the camera she had lost. It was a black contrast against his pale white hand, and it took her a moment to snap out of her imaginings to take the item from him.

"Thank you." He didn't say anything, just looked at her with his amber eyes, that twinkled and reflected some of the light. He seemed so non-existent, like a ghostly figure that really wasn't there, just an apparition. But she had felt the warmth that seeped from him when she took the camera, thus proving he was anything but. They stood like that for an insurmountable time, her looking straight into his deadly eyes while he looked back at her, only it seemed as though he was looking straight through her.

"Take another picture." Was his command when he spoke for the first time that night.

Automatically, she said, "Of what?"

"The landscape."

Nodding silently, she turned the camera on and readied her position, finding that the lake looked absolutely tranquil and a perfect display of beauty. She snapped the photo, without the flash this time, and viewed the photo. Just as she thought, the moon was enough light to see the whole picture.

"Let me see." He didn't give her a chance to respond when he gently took the photo from her hands, and looked at it himself. He gave it back a minute later, commanded to take another picture.

She didn't ask what to take this time, instead opting for improvising and taking a picture of partly the pool, and a bit of him. When she snapped the photo, and looked at the picture, she was surprised to see that this time he wasn't a dog, but instead his human shell. She was shocked to see how stupendous the photo was.

He didn't have a chance to ask when she handed him the picture shortly after. He scrutinized it. "I am not a dog." Was what he said.

"Yeah, why I don't know, but it's a good picture." She said, almost flippantly.

Sesshoumaru didn't give the camera back, but instructed her to sit near the pool. Doing as bade, she sat on one of the large rocks, and posed, head slightly tilted toward the moon with her hands in her lap, looking surreal. He snapped the photo, brought it down, and viewed it. The picture was barely visible, for the moon's light shadowed half of her body, but the silhouetted presentation of her on the rock was unique and surprisingly intriguing to him.

Kagome walked over to him, and didn't miss the mesmerized look on his normally remote face. "Can I see?" she asked, and then the expression dissolved, and he handed her the camera. She saw the potential it might bring her, hoped that it could possibly win something in the photography school. When she looked up he was retreating again. "Hey, wait!" she called, and though he didn't stop, she knew he heard her.

Sighing, she knew he wouldn't be back again, so stripped down, and enjoyed her bath.


	3. Appreciation

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**_Photograph

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_**

The next day, she hadn't seen Sesshoumaru at all. Neither did she the next day. Nor was he around the next week. She becoming a bit disgruntled, but paid no mind, and continued to hunt for the Shikon shards with her group, feigning casualty. Inside, though, she was hoping he'd come back. The taijiya had asked her about it not too long ago, but Kagome had dismissed her friend's concern and continued to appear as if everything was okay.

Though she had only known the taiyoukai to be a ruthless killing machine that wanted to kill her on sight, she had missed the way he marveled over her pictures. She got over it quickly, though, until the second week with no show she had went back home to her own time to present her photos.

Mr. Tsukihaku had been extremely pleased with her work. "I simply love this one! I mean, where in the world did you find this old of a kimono and this elegant piece of armor?"

Inspecting the picture of the demon lord with a critical eye, Kagome smoothly lied, "I have a friend who collects this sort of thing. I borrowed it from him, and then asked my friend to dress up for me, and we found a spot and I took the picture."

"Enchanting!" Mr. Tsukihaku exalted. "Is that his real hair?"

"Yes, he likes to dye it and wear it long."

"And that picture of you by the pond is absolutely breath-taking!" Mr. Tsukihaku took the enlarged photo in his hands and gave it extra care. "This will be displayed at the open art museum this weekend if you so choose! How knows! Maybe you could win something."

"A-are you serious?" Kagome stammered, thrilled.

"Oh, absolutely!" He picked up the photo of Sesshoumaru in his dog demon form in the forest. "The digital art here is astounding, and the background compliments it completely. If you want, this will go on display, also."

"Yes! Yes!" Kagome stood from her stool and hopped up and down, forgetting that she was being childish in front of her boss. Of course, his enthusiasm for her was amazing and he was proud of his student. When Kagome finally calmed down, she asked somewhat professionally. "So, what about this one? And the ones with the birds and tree?"

Mr. Tsukihaku picked the photos up, inspected them, and started sorting them out. "This one, of the large tree, we'll see what we can do. The birds, not so much. I haven't seen this species before, but we'll see what I can do with them. The one with the boy in the uniform will definitely be on display with the others. You've done a remarkable job Ms. Higarashi, and I expect full results like these always."

Kagome had a sinking feeling that quite possibly her 'partner' may not enjoy being photographed anymore, and told him this. "You see, it was a taxing job just to talk him into it, I don't know if he'd be willing. I can try, though."

Mr. Tsukihaku shook his head. "No worries. Make do with what you can. I just expect 120%."

"Yes, Mr. Tsukihaku." Kagome stood and bowed. "Arigatou."

She went immediately home and told her mother and brother, and showed them the photos.

"Oh my," her mother gasped, "isn't that Inuyasha?"

"No," Kagome said, "it's his brother, Sesshoumaru."

"It sure looks a lot like him." Souta said. "Except for the moon on his face. And those lines on his cheeks."

"He's a full demon." Kagome told him. "He's got the markings to prove it."

Her mother looked at her daughter wryly. "Are you developing feelings for him as well?"

Kagome bristled. "Eeek! I am not Kaa-san! He just sort of let me take his picture..."

Her mother smiled, winked, and walked away to prepare dinner.

Souta gave his sister a meaningful look. "Sis, you're so clueless..."

Kagome ignored him and after dinner, she returned back to the Sengoku Jidai, to see a taiyoukai awaiting her by the well. Sesshoumaru didn't greet her, or say why he was here, just stood there looking at her.

Thinking he deserved a thanks for helping her with her career unknowingly, she gave him a deep bow when she stepped out of the well. "Thank you."

"For what?" he said quickly.

"You've helped me with my career. My boss loves the pictures."

Sesshoumaru appeared not to care in the slightest.

So, taking the opportunity of silence, Kagome asked in a small voice. "Is there...possibly a way I can continue to take your picture to help me further?"

"Why would you need my help?" he asked in turn, the way his tone carried to her was testing. A slight smirk followed his question.

"Because," sighed Kagome, "my boss really liked the pictures I took of you and he wants more. I'd like you to help me so I can give him more and keep going with my career."

"Why take pictures as a career?"

"Now you're starting to sound like Inuyasha."

He paused to this, considering. Still, he persisted with the question. "I do not see the point of just taking pictures that could surely support a life."

"It's not so much as to _support_ a life, it's just my way of _living_."

He crinkled his nose in distaste, a small movement that she would have missed it had she blinked. "A way of living? How pointless."

"It's not pointless!" she shouted, hands fisted at her sides. "Lots of people see it the same way, too!"

"And I bet those people have a lot of others who don't agree with them." Something flashed behind his eyes. "Take myself, for example."

"You just don't have any sense of appreciation." Was her response, before she smartly shut her mouth.

The taiyoukai ventured nearer to her, eyes boring into hers, daring her to say another word. "This Sesshoumaru possess appreciation."

Determined not to be walked on, Kagome retorted, "And what might that be, Sesshoumaru-_sama_?"

He didn't answer, instead his one hand came to lift up her chin with a sharp claw, causing her to look at him fully. He then traced a slow, gentle trail down her neck, and the heat within her core ignited. The hand moved around to brush a strand of hair away from her face, before suddenly, a weight in her palms was missing. When she peered down, the camera had been snatched, and he was thirty paces from him, turning it on, and aiming it at her.

"Do not move." Was what he said before he snapped the photo.

He came back, quicker this time, so fast that when he stopped the air stirred and her hair moved. He showed her the photo, of her with her startled expression and precarious pose.

"If I were to..._appreciate_ this, I would have achieved appreciation, correct?"

Stunned, she snapped back to reality and shook her head, taking the camera from him. "That's not how it works." She went back to the picture of him by the lake. "You see this picture? I appreciate it. Do you know why?" His silence was taken as a no. "Well, I _appreciate_ the way the moonlight makes you look surreal and not at all human--"

"You forget I am not?" he intoned, a bit of mirth in that statement.

She immaturely stuck her tongue out. "I _know_ that! My boss doesn't, though." She gave a small huff, and continued her rant. "The picture of the landscape matches the way you stand out in contrast to the darkness, the pale full moon that's reflecting off of the surface of the water also helps to amplify the effects of your appearance. Besides, the moon suits you. It's on your forehead, too." Without thinking of it, her finger reached up and poked the spot where the crescent moon was on his forehead.

He didn't lash out and strike her, as she had first thought, when she realized what she had did. Instead, his hand came up to grip her wrist, brought it down, and gave her a level stare, silently asking, "Was that necessary?"

"S-sorry." She murmured, trying to wrench away her hand, but found he kept it in his grip.

He didn't say anything, instead, released her hand to take the camera from her. He went to the picture he had just taken of her, and indicated that he wanted her to look at it. "So if I was going to _appreciate_ this picture," he started, giving her a look she did not discern, before looking back, "one must look at the positive aspects of the photograph?"

"Y-yes, basically." She stuttered.

"And the positive aspects of this photo would be..."

She didn't know at first if he was just thinking of some or waiting for her to fill in the blanks. But when he gave her a look at told her that indeed, he _was_ waiting for her diagnosis, she pointed to the well. "You see the well?" he nodded. "It's brown frame actually compliments the green grass to make it look brighter and bolder, and the flowers that are surrounding it as well give it a serene picture to it. The sun only further accentuates the peaceful atmosphere. Me? I'm just ruining the peace and upsetting the balance by being there."

At this, Kagome heard his soft chuckle from behind her ear. "I think you fit into the picture just fine." When she looked up at the taiyoukai to figure out what he meant, she noticed that his features seemed to have softened, but that could just be the delirious state she was in.

"U-um, no, in order to have a proper picture you need balance along with the right objects to compliment the other object so that the picture stays equal and gives out the emotion you want it to."

"What if the emotion I want to portray is humor?"

She was about to snap back, but saw him smiling, just barely, so she could just see the white teeth between his lips. At first, she continued to stare, before realization smacked her one hard and she came back to reality.

"Well, then I think you would have won a Grammy." She said, trying to be cryptic, but failing when she smiled.

Sesshoumaru pretended to know what a 'Grammy' was, and simply said, "Hn." Without announcing his departure, he started to walk away again.

"H-Hey!" Kagome sputtered, running after him. She caught his one arm, and he whirled around, so fast that he managed to knock her down, with him on top of her. At first, Kagome didn't know what kind of position they were in, until she opened her eyes. His knee was in between her legs, capturing one leg, while his one hand pinned down both of her hands that were above her head, his face mere inches away from hers.

She turned scarlet, and tried to wriggle from his grasp. But with no such luck, and not wanting to resort to trying to fight him off, she sat there, frowning up at him. Finally, after several heartbeats, she asked, "Can you please let me up now?"

"Will you not grab me next time?" was what he said in turn.

Kagome could feel his feathery hair just brushing against the bare part of her skin, how sensual it felt, but ignored it and answered. "I will not grab you again." She said sulkily.

He seemed to probe her eyes for deceit and trickery, but, he must have found nothing when he slowly raised himself to his feet so easily that it appeared effortless. When she stood, he was no where in sight, completely gone.


	4. Gift

_A/N: Hey, before I continue, I've had a question as to whether or not I am a photographer. Sadly, I'm not, and certainly not a professional. But, I enjoy taking pictures of varies sceneries that strike me and the descriptions I used for what Kagome was explaining was my own opinions on some drawings and photographs I've seen in the past._

_

* * *

**Photograph

* * *

**_

The next day was slightly different; she had went for a peaceful stroll down to the lake in the twilight where she could gather some water to boil to make Inuyasha his ramen and to cook the fish they had caught the previous day, and when she leaned down to gather the water into the wooden bucket a presence tickled her back, wheeling her around, to see the taiyoukai standing there. Startled, Kagome dropped the bucket, spilling the water and soaking her clothes.

Grumbling obscenities, she gathered the bucket in her arms and stood, giving him a glare. "Thanks," she said petulantly, "you made me drop this all over myself."

The taiyoukai merely said, "I did not make you do such an act. I am standing here."

Kagome sniffed. "Whatever. I was going to give you something, but since you got me all wet, I don't think I'll give it to you anymore."

With that last note, and feeling rather proud of herself, she filled the bucket up unhampered by his presence and began to walk away confidently, happy she was affective in giving him the cold-shoulder. As she brushed past him, his hand came to her shoulder to halt her in place, almost causing her to spill the contents of the bucket a second time.

Kagome reeled, and looked him straight in the eyes, undaunted by his vibrating youki. "What?" she asked blandly.

"This Sesshoumaru will not tolerate such impudence." Kagome would have guffawed had she not have wanted to spill the bucket again.

Instead, she said, "Well, I'm ever so sorry, but I must be off to cook supper." She started to walk forward, found she couldn't, then met his stare again. "Now what? Why won't you let me go?"

Sesshoumaru took the bucket from her hands and set it on the ground, surprisingly not spilling it, and squared her shoulders to face him. "What have you brought for my person?"

"Forget it. I'm not showing you now," Kagome huffed, giving him the universal 'hands-on-hips' gesture that displayed she was too stubborn to give into his demands.

The demon lord seemed to recognize the gesture, didn't appear impressed. "Show me what you have for me, miko." He said coolly.

"And why should I?"

At first the taiyoukai seemed to be at a loss of an answer. Then, it sort of hit Kagome that he was just genuinely curious, and if she had to guess once more, it seemed as though he was _really_ interested in her proposal of a gift to him. Internally snickering, Kagome said, "Fine, I'll show you." She made it appear like she was going to move, and when she didn't, Sesshoumaru arched a brow.

"What are you waiting for, miko?"

"I'll show you," Kagome sang, "if you stop calling me 'miko' and start calling me by my name. Ka-go-me."

"Such a waste of time," scoffed the demon lord.

"No, I'd like to be called by my name, Sesshoumaru-_sama_." She gave a little victorious grin.

"Fine," he said. "I shall concede, _Kagome_."

For a reason unknown to her, the way he pronounced her name sent chills up her spine. He let her shoulder free, and allowed her to walk away.

"Let me just run this back and get my knapsack, all right?" she said, and when he nodded passively she grabbed the water bucket and trotted as fast as she could without upsetting the water.

A few minutes later she returned, in fresh new clothes that suited the warm climate, and an object wrapped in strange colored paper he had never seen before. She held it out to him, with a smile on her face. "Here!"

Cautiously, Sesshoumaru took the small item, and gave it a subtle sniff. He began to turn it around in his palm, inspecting it.

Kagome rolled her eyes. "It's not going to detonate, and it has no special sutras on it or any purification spells. It's safe."

He seemed to deem her trustworthy, and tore into the paper with his fangs. Sesshoumaru gazed at the new white camera in his palm for quite a while before he actually answered. "You bought me a camera?"

"Yup!" Kagome chirped. She bounced up to him. "It's sort of the same as mine, so you shouldn't have a problem with it. You can take one-thousand pictures, so you won't have to worry about running out of memory space for long. If you want them enlarged as actual photographs I'd be happy to do it for you."

When he still didn't say anything, she became a bit worried. Did he not like it? Was white not his favorite color? Did he possibly prefer black or grey instead? Maybe--

"Thank you,"

The gesture took her off guard, thinking she'd heard wrong, she got him to repeat it.

"Um, you're welcome. And...it was no trouble?" she wasn't actually expecting him to thank her, much less repeat it twice.

One question remained for the taiyoukai though. "Why did you get me this?"

Kagome was glad she actually knew that answer. "Well, I thought you would like one to take pictures of yourself and other things. Like, maybe a picture of Rin to keep as a memory. You seem to enjoy it."

"Enjoy?" he said it like he was tasting a new flavor. "I do not enjoy trivial acts." He tucked the camera into the pocket of his armor. "But I will use it, granted that I can take a picture of you with it."

Cheeks flushing, Kagome didn't know what to say to that. "Sure." Was what came out of her mouth.

Sesshoumaru made a move as if to leave abruptly, but instead he stalked toward the miko with purpose and leaned over her, searching her eyes. If she was correct, he seemed to be judging something, or maybe inspecting. Oh, god, did she have a pimple on her forehead!? The thought vanished when Sesshoumaru's clawed hand tipped back her chin just enough so that she was eye level with him, staring straight into his sun-kissed eyes. She didn't know how long they remained like that, before slowly, he lowered himself to her, so that their breaths mingled and if she were to just lean forward slightly she'd feel his lips on hers.

However, her image was short-lived when he pulled back almost too quickly, flashed the camera at her, and began to stalk away, leaving her in a stupor. Kagome stood there, chin up, eyes wide, looking like a moron. How had he turned it on so fast? Once she thought she could breathe, she started back to the village, where she was wondering what he'd do if she got him a flat-screen TV.


	5. Equality

* * *

**_Photograph

* * *

_**

Two days later, she purposely wandered off from the group to lead him to her, and by then her shard hunters were already used to her appearances and disappearances, just so long as the demon youkai didn't harm her in any way and that the girl herself knew she was in no danger. Inuyasha was becoming quite callous with the idea of the miko hanging out with his brother and having them get along, but he was being ignored and eventually he had gotten used to it.

Kagome sat in the middle of an open field, taking pictures silently while watching the grass sway in the breeze. This time, she wasn't doing it for her job, rather to wait patiently and enjoy the scenery and the nice weather. The day before it had down poured, and though the ground underneath her was still slightly damp the perfect view of the green grass was almost too tempting to pass up.

As she had anticipated, Sesshoumaru had granted her his presence, walking from the girth of the forest to where she sat. He had taken out his own camera, the one she bought for him, and when he approached her he snapped a photo. As he sat he looked at it, found it mildly disconcerting how he thought she was perfect for the background of the photo.

"I've been thinking of how you were saying about equality in photographs." He said, and had her undivided attention almost instantly. Wordlessly, he snapped another photo. Viewing it, he said, "I think a photograph should also have something that tips it off, so it can stand out more. Equality is much too mundane and should be changed."

"But equality in a photo makes perfect blend. Having something that tips it off would ruin it," she argued.

"Not necessarily," he snapped another photo. He showed her. "You don't belong in this photograph, do you?" Kagome shook her head. "Yet, the appearance is still striking with you being there. You compliment the photograph. You belong in it."

Kagome was at a loss of words. There she was, sitting in the grass, hair a bit disheveled while she was in a white tank and blue skirt, and he thought she _belonged_ there?

She had to disagree with him. "No, no." She took out the photo of him and the moon once again. "See? Remember how I told you it contrasts yet blends in? _You_ are suited for this photo, whereas _I_ am not in this one." She held up both cameras for comparison.

Sesshoumaru took his back, showed her her photo. "You want to know why I belong in your photograph?"

"Yes."

"The reason I belong in yours is because I am that of the moon; so I belong there." He gestured toward the photo of her. "The reason you belong in mine is because you are of the sun; you belong here."

Kagome sucked in a breath. She had to admit, he was complimenting her a lot recently, and for the life of her she didn't know what he meant behind it all.

"Thank you." She said, relieved she didn't stutter.

"Do not thank me," he returned the camera to his lap, "I only speak the truth."

Idly, to break the somewhat encouraging air about them, Kagome aimed her camera at the taiyoukai and snapped her own picture. She viewed it, found it unfair how he even looked celestial in the sunlight and in the middle of grass. He was just absolutely perfect, and she was ordinary and plain. He was the moon, she was the sun. A demon, a human miko. They were total opposites, yet, Kagome wondered why it sounded like such a _good_ thing.

Almost knocking the wind out of her, Sesshoumaru tackled her and pinned her to the ground, the camera in his one arm held high above their heads.

"What are you doing!?" she shrieked, getting flustered by his closeness once again. Was he even _aware_ of what he was doing to her?

"Taking a picture." He stated simply, eyes to the camera, head lowered so that his cheek was just brushing hers, his whole body covering her own small frame. When he pressed the button, and the camera flashed, he didn't move off of her. Kagome wondered what he was doing, what he was thinking, but decided against trying to analyze his brain.

He looked at her then, fiercely. "Are you afraid?"

"Of?"

"Myself."

No hesitation, "No."

He smiled, not a benign smile, not a passionate smile; a sinister one. His hand dropped the camera to the grassy floor, came to gently cup her cheek, and then wrap around her throat, pressing against the small bulge in the middle. Kagome, however, did not scream in terror, try to fight him off, or even appeared remotely terrified. Her expectant brown eyes just searched in his in a way that made it seem intrusive. The thought of her infringement into his being made him uneasy; he pressed down a bit harder.

"Why are you not screaming miko?" he hissed into her ear. "Why are you not fighting me?"

"Because you won't hurt me."

Sesshoumaru scoffed. "And what makes you think that?"

"You haven't tried to in a while, why should you now? You've no reason to. And besides," she moved her hands up to cup his cheeks, and lifted herself up off of the ground, "I _belong_ here."

The demon lord seemed to think she was fooling him, but he found she was quite serious. And he suddenly found he was much too near her, and that her scent was now everywhere, filling his nostrils, and beckoning him further. He moved the hand from her neck, lightly trailed a path to her navel, repeated the motion a second time, and watched as she squirmed beneath him to fight her rising emotions.

He silently grabbed the camera, took another photograph of her writhing form, and set it down. To her surprise, he didn't leave. He sat up enough so that he wasn't leering over her form, and then lay down beside her, so that their shoulders were touching and his silky silver hair pooled around him. Kagome tried frantically to still her rapidly beating heart, and tried to make sense of his previous actions. Was he just getting enjoyment out of watching her discomfort? That was probably it, the sadist.

"Is that all you do?" Sesshoumaru asked beside her, voice uncharacteristically soft for a change.

Kagome figured it was selective hearing and answered. "Do what?"

"Take photographs."

"No. I also play sports, read, fight off demons, and attend school."

"What are sports? And why does a peasant girl attend school?"

Kagome sniffed. "Excuse me, I am _not_ a peasant. And sports, you know, like kick-ball and catch."

"Those stupid games are considered sports?"

"Not where I live, no, they're merely just child games. But we have more, volleyball, soccer, basketball, football, a lot more things, too."

Sesshoumaru seemed to think that all of those names were unsuitable.

"Would you like to learn one?"

The taiyoukai sniffed. "A sport?"

"Yes."

Kagome could have sworn she saw his golden eyes roll. "No, thank you. This Sesshoumaru has better things to do."

The miko edged just a bit closer to the taiyoukai, and smiled. "Like lying here with me?"

"Foolish matters," he snorted, and made an attempt to get to his feet.

Without thinking, Kagome reached for his shoulder to pull him back down, and by the time she realized she made a mistake he was looming over her again, eyes fierce and predatory. Kagome was only startled for a second before her calm facade returned, which drove him a bit crazy. He wanted to see the fear, not the remoteness that signified that she wasn't scared of him. If he hadn't spent so much time with the miko she would be cowering underneath him, not looking up at him, giving him a look that was took as, "Is that all you can do?"

He growled, almost full throated, ripping through parts of his diaphragm, to scare her. She didn't even blink. He inched closer, so that his lips were dangerously close to her open neck, and growled again, pressing his lips against her skin to allow her to feel the vibration going through his torso. If his ears hadn't deceived him, he could have sworn she _giggled._

Pulling away sharply, he assessed her, and, indeed, she had a smile on her face with a little giggle escaping them.

"What is so funny miko?" he challenged, feeling inferior by her lack of fear.

Kagome wiped a tear from her eye. "For one, it's Kagome remember." He grumbled his assent half-heartedly. "And two, it tickled."

The demon lord fought to keep his eye from twitching. _Tickled?_ His death growl _tickled_ her? Sesshoumaru gave a barely audible sigh through his nose. '_I just cannot win with this woman,_' he thought, exasperated.

"Am I supposed to be frightened?" Kagome asked him, trying but failing to stifle her laughter.

She could have sworn she saw the mighty demon pout. "Yes." He answered cryptically.

Kagome threw her head back and laughed. "Okay, let's try again, this time, with a little more _umph_!"

She was expecting him to stop straddling her and to walk away, but he loomed over once again, eyes searing red, mouth open to show his fangs in a mock grin. He got closer, till their noses were touching, and then a growl emitted from his mouth that almost had Kagome on the verge of sprinting for her life. The sharp points of his armor just poked into her flesh, but it was hardly a concern. She hadn't been acting either, but she was trying to be conscious of her reactions; widened eyes, frozen stature, breath held. So far, her breathing had halted but she wasn't widening her eyes, and her body seemed to be quaking. The growl intensified, amplified because he decided to become more demonic by allowing his face to become almost completely alienated to resemble his demonic form, where his nose lengthened into half a snout, his eyes turned blood red with tiny green ovals, his teeth becoming sharpened and extended, tongue dangling from his mouth part way.

Kagome was a bit mortified to say the least; a whimper escaped her lips.

Sesshoumaru instantly reverted back to his human form, having been aware that this time, Kagome _had_ been truly scared of him. Why didn't he feel the satisfaction of that? Why did he feel...guilty? Guilty he had frightened her? Where had that come from?

Kagome's lip was quibbling, her eyes had glazed over, and she looked about ready to bolt. Sesshoumaru, softly, took his one hand to rub her moistened cheek, and leaned down to look, what he hoped, apologetic.

"I am sorry for frightening you," he said, his breath fanning her face, momentarily making Kagome forget she had been scared.

Stubbornly, she wiped away the tears. "I wasn't frightened."

Sesshoumaru took both of her hands away from her eyes, clasped them gently in his one, and brought it down to rest on your chest. "I did not mean to really petrify you." He said honestly.

"You...were a bit creepy. I mean, not _creepy_, but certainly--"

He cut her off by taking his hand and putting a finger over her lips, effectively silencing her on-coming rant.

Without telling her what he was planning, he shifted back to grab something; the camera. He aimed it at her face, her tear-streaked face with big glassy eyes that were still afraid, and snapped the photo.

"Why did you take my picture?" she asked when he started to look at it.

He didn't look up from the photo when he said this, "So I can remind myself never to put that expression on your face again."

She gasped, surprised. '_What is up with him lately? He seems so...different._ _Not the heartless person I knew..._'

Without another word, the mighty lord stood, and began to saunter off without a word of goodbye. This time, Kagome did not hamper his intentions, but continued to lay there, staring up at the pale blue sky, becoming lost in her thoughts. She remembered where he had been previously sitting, and she blushed furiously, and thoughts of how close he was, and how she skipped every opportunity that came her way, and smacked her in the face.

"Wait a minute," she said aloud, pitching forward into a sitting position, "I want to kiss Sesshoumaru?"


	6. Stolen

* * *

**_Photograph

* * *

_**

She thought of it for days and nights, wondering why she even had the urge in the first place, and for a particular youkai itself. '_Maybe Kaa-san is right,_' Kagome thought, sighing. '_Maybe I _do_ have feelings for him._' Kagome paced around the campfire, her friends watching her movements suspiciously, but neither questioned as to what the young miko could be pondering about. '_But what if he doesn't have feelings for me?_' Kagome thought, staggering to a halt.

Sango stood and grasped her friend's shoulders. "Kagome-chan, do you want to talk about it?"

Knowing she could trust her friend with anything, but also knowing that it may crush her, Kagome was at a loss as to what to tell her. "I don't know, Sango. It's a bit complicated, really."

"Pheh. I bet it's about my brother." Came Inuyasha's indignant grunt from the other side.

Miroku, the peace-keeper, added in silently, "She has been spending quite a bit of time with him, Inuyasha. It is not uncommon for Kagome-san to become attached. And, as it may seem, Sesshoumaru-sama seems to have become attached to her as well."

Furious, Inuyasha pounded his fist on the ground. "Ha!" he chortled. "Like my anti-social, arrogant, self-absorbed brother could become attached to something, let alone a _human_!" Inuyasha continued to snort about with laughter while he was oblivious to Kagome's drooping shoulders.

"Don't listen to that," Sango soothed, rubbing Kagome's arms comfortingly. "He could be wrong Kagome."

"Probably not," sighed the miko, who shook her head. "Are you not mad at me, Sango?"

The taijiya smiled warmly. "Of course not, Kagome. It's your life, and it has become apparent to all of us, even Inuyasha, that he means you no harm." Sango sent a scathing look toward the cackling hanyou. "And who knows, maybe he might have become attached to you too. And he's wrong; Sesshoumaru-sama has become attached to Rin, remember? And she is human."

Kagome sniffed. "Yeah, thanks Sango. But I don't want to get my hopes up too high. Just in case."

"I understand."

The two hugged, before Kagome felt so tired that she could have fallen asleep standing up. Instead, she opted for another bath, to soothe her troubles and hopefully help her sleep past noon the next morning.

"I'm going to take a bath," Kagome told Sango.

"Be careful. We're right here if you need us."

Kagome nodded and gathered her night clothes, and submersed herself into the dark, chilling forest. They had camped here regularly, so finding the hot spring was no chore, and soon enough she had saved herself the taxing trip by cutting corners and using the trees to guide her to the location. It was fairly huge, even for a hot spring, that left little grass to undress. Quickly, worried that possibly Miroku had slipped past Sango's guard and was watching her, the miko stripped herself of clothing and submerged herself into the lukewarm water.

She breathed a sigh of relief, sank even lower, so that her nose was just above the surface. She trusted her friends and allowed some of her guard to slip away, so that she could relax and hopefully discard her thoughts of a certain taiyoukai of the west.

Ten minutes later and feeling utterly drained of stimulation, Kagome hauled herself from the pool and grabbed her towel. A flash of white startled her, and had her gripping the towel tightly, as she surveyed the area and searched in her brain as to what the flash could have been from. Then it struck her. A flash. From a camera. Heat warming her cheeks, and refraining from screeching lest she alert her friends, Kagome hissed under her breath, "Sesshoumaru! I know that was you! Get out of here this ins--"

But what stepped out of the forest wasn't the demon lord, rather a monkey demon dangling from a tree holding _her_ camera in his four hands. The youki surrounding him signaled that he was no amateur demon, but rather one that would be difficult to exterminate. And, once again, _she had forgot her weapons_! Scowling, Kagome quickly slipped on her sneakers and readied her purification powers, daring the monkey demon to approach closer.

The demon, however, snapped another photo, and fell out of the tree. Dumbstruck, Kagome hesitantly started backwards, no doubt in her mind the monkey would be quite angry after he had gotten over being blind. Her instincts proved correct when the monkey sprung to his feet, crushed the camera in his hands, and started charging toward her. Hands out on instinct, Kagome screamed before another flash of white light darted before her eyes, followed by a sickening crunch and a thump.

A familiar youki energy tickled her senses, and when she opened her eyes she spotted the illuminated Sesshoumaru dismembering the monkey demon and casting it into the forest.

"Sesshoumaru!" Kagome raced to him, where she nearly embraced him, had she remembered that she was clad only in a towel and required hands to keep it secured.

"Are you all right?" he asked, eyes looking at her, and then quickly taking in her attire, or lack thereof.

Flushing, Kagome clutched the towel to her chest while wrapping her arms around herself. "Yes, yes, I'm fine, thank you." After several calming breaths, she cursed. "God damn monkey broke my camera..."

"The monkey stole your camera?"

Had she been any less furious, she would have laughed at the way he repeated her words. It almost sounded like 'the dog ate my homework.'

"Yes, he stole it." Kagome stomped to where she thought he dropped it. She stooped down, conscious of the way the towel rode up her rear, and picked up the remnants of the perfectly good camera. To her relief, however, the memory card hadn't been crushed and was still useful. But, she took a moment of silence to commemorate her camera's death.

As she walked back to him, camera in hands, while she sulked.

"He broke it?" he said, more of a statement than a question.

Kagome nodded her head sadly. "Yeah, but the memory card is still there, so I haven't lost my pictures."

"But you are unable to take anymore."

"For a while, yes, but I'll have to buy a new one soon."

"As long as you still have the photographs I see nothing wrong."

Kagome sighed, knowing he clearly didn't get the idea that spending so much money on an item was important. Of course, knowing him, he came from royalty, hence his full regalia and open display of authority, so money was probably not much of a concern for him.

"That's not exactly it," she mumured at last, looking to the ground, hands clutching the tiny memory card.

Sesshoumaru's eyebrow quirked up. "Than what is it?"

The miko rubbed her tired eyes, forgot she was wearing a towel, and instantly clutched the article of clothing to her bosom. "Well," she began, "I have to go and save up money so I can buy a new camera. I've had that one for a year. Kaa-san gave it to me as an eighteenth birthday present."

"I have money." Was what he said.

'_Is he actually offering money?_' she questioned internally. '_Little good his money will do in my time, though._' "Thanks, but no thanks. We don't have the same currency there as we do here, the money would be worthless."

"I shall give you another camera then."

Kagome was practically receiving whiplash. "Y-you'll what?"

The taiyoukai gave her a look that questioned her IQ. "I shall give you a new camera."

"B-but you can't!" Kagome flew her arms up. "They don't make them here, trust me."

Sesshoumaru seemed displeased with this, his only indication was the way he absently grinded his jaws together.

"Hey," she stepped closer to him, looking into his eyes, "don't worry about it. I'll get another one. If I'm lucky I might get a loan from my boss. If he loves my pictures so much I'm sure a bit of money couldn't hurt."

As the taiyoukai agreed to this, Kagome heard a ruckus in the forest, and just as she thought a hoard of monkey demons were on their way, Inuyasha, Sango, Miroku, Shippou, and Kirara came bounding out of the forest.

Kagome gave them a bit of a flat stare. "A bit late, guys."

Inuyasha approached his brother with a frown on his face. "What did you do to Kagome!?"

"Inuyasha!" Kagome gripped his forearm. "He didn't do anything, he's the one that saved me!"

Inuyasha growled at this. "What do you think you're doing saving Kagome! We can do that ourselves?"

Sesshoumaru remained perfectly stoic. "Obviously not, considering you bunch are a few minutes late. Had I not have intervened you wouldn't have your Kagome as of now."

The group lapsed into guilty silence, as they thought about his words, and how they were painstakingly true.

"Yeah," Inuyasha snorted at last, "well next time we'll get there faster than you!"

"Inuyasha."

The aforementioned hanyou stiffened at the warning in the miko's voice.

"Don't sit me, please!" he squawked, retreating from his brother. "I won't fight with him, honest!"

Kagome huffed while gathering her close and approaching the taiyoukai. She bowed formerly. "Thank you for saving me."

Sesshoumaru didn't say anything; reached into his hoari to pull out his own camera. Before Kagome knew what he was doing, he flashed a picture of her towel-clad form and took off into the forest, leaving her bristling. Kagome turned to see her snickering friends, save Inuyasha, who held contemptment on his face.

"What are you guys laughing at?" Kagome said, trying to look sinister but failing when she started to snort with them.

Sango pointed at her friend, hand over her mouth and eyes squeezed shut. "You're only in a towel, and now he has the picture to prove it."

As if just realizing that he _did_ take her photo, Kagome turned toward the direction he had bounded in and shouted, "Sesshoumaru! You better keep that to yourself!"

One-hundred feet away from where they all stood, masking his youki, the taiyoukai smirked and stalked off, camera in hand.


	7. Hesitation

* * *

**_Photograph

* * *

_**

Kagome returned to her modern era, and had purchased a new camera, despite the fact it was coming out of her college money. '_I'll pay it back as soon as I get paid,_' she thought determinedly, and when she returned home to present her new camera there hadn't been a single person in the house-hold. Not so much as surprised but more disappointed, Kagome wandered into the kitchen where a sticky note was signed for her.

_Sorry honey, taking Souta and Jii-san out for grocery shopping. Someone needs to teach the men how to provide the house with food. If you leave today I love you._

Kagome sighed, removed her bookbag, and took out the new camera that was still in the box she had purchased it in. She gently tore open the flaps and took out the camera, which was navy blue, and was only five-hundred dollars than her other one. She hoped the quality would be just as good as the eight-hundred dollar one. '_Kaa-san will be sad to hear of the broken one, and that I took a lot of money from my bank,_' Kagome thought, but discarded it, and started to try the new camera out by snapping photos by her own God Tree.

She stood beneath the dark green canvas, watched in awe as the birds took residence in the branches, and started to snap photos, pleased with the color quality and the lack of distortion. True she only bought Sesshoumaru a cheaper twenty dollar camera, he hadn't seemed to complain a bit about the picture quality. Or maybe he didn't know it was bad. Shaking her head, she resumed her photos, before she eventually grew tired, and thought of how Sesshoumaru would look like under the younger God Tree.

Returning into the house, she packed her supplies and jumped into the well, not surprised to see him waiting for her, meditating on the grass. Kagome threw down her knapsack, rummaged through it, and brought out her new camera. Approaching the taiyoukai with a grin on her face, she turned the camera on, and, while he was not moving, took her time and snapped the photo.

'_Man, even in the dim overcast he looks so intriguing._' She walked over to him and presented the new camera, which he opened one golden eye to inspect.

"It's new," he mused, holding out his hand, and she gave it to him. He looked through the camera's lens and aimed it at her. "And it's better."

"Yeah, it's more expensive than the last one, but it's worth it."

He took out his own, and turned it on, setting hers on his knee. He flipped through the varies embarrassing photos of hers (including the one from the night before) and came across some pictures of Rin. The girl was a natural, Kagome could tell, by the way she posed, knew the right way to look and how to smile, and how she just looked absolutely breath-taking in each photo.

"She's gorgeous," awed Kagome, surprised by sheer mass of photographs of the little girl.

"Rin was adamant that she took just as pretty pictures as Kagome." Sesshoumaru mimicked, although he was mostly monotone, it carried the same amusement behind the sentence.

Kagome smiled widely. "I'm glad she likes my wide variety of photos." She shot him a knowing glance, which he promptly ignored.

"She's not the only one," she thought she heard him say, but didn't request for him to repeat it.

"Have you given your boss any more photographs?" he asked her after they had finished looking through his documents, genuinely curious.

Kagome sat down beside him, fiddling with her camera. "Yes. A few. He liked the one of you in the field very much, and that one will be on display, too. He...likes the ones with me in them, too, and wishes for me to take more of myself. He says a good photographer can have a few of her own pictures every now and then. So I was wondering..."

"If I would take some of you?"

Kagome smiled hopefully. "Please?"

"I suppose."

"Thank you!" Without thinking, she flung herself out toward him, and wrapped her arms around his neck. He stiffened, startled, while she took a moment to register her impromptu actions, and to slowly, cautiously, detach herself from him. "Uh...sorry about that...I was just...excited..."

The taiyoukai wasn't sure what his initial reaction should be, but he knew for sure he hadn't swatted her away because he simply didn't _want_ to. He had to admit, he didn't mind her closeness, when they had been closer before, no thanks to his persistence. Maybe there was something wrong with him? He looked at her to see her watchful expression. Maybe there's something wrong with the both of them.

"So...I don't know what to dress up in for a photo." She inched a bit away from him, and for some reason this unsettled him. "Do you have any suggestions?"

He was quiet, considering, not exactly her question, but his motivation. Where was he going with this miko? What would it do to things? Would it implicate his and her life? Obviously. Did he want it to? He couldn't say for sure.

"Sesshoumaru?" came her hesitant voice from beside him. He didn't notice he had snapped out of it for a moment and immediately answered her.

"I think you should try our clothing. Your 'boss' seems to like our style of clothing, so I'm sure a miko attire would be acceptable for his business."

"That's a great idea!" she exalted, generally pleased with his idea. "I think Mr. Tsukihaku would love that! I'm going to return home and--"

As she went to jump for the well, his hand caught her own. She jerked back, but not roughly, enough so that she propelled forward than came to a simultaneous halt. Kagome turned, wondered what he wanted, but saw by his expression he wasn't so sure, either. So, waiting for him to either unlatch his hand or to say something, she made sure she scrutinized his every detail while she had the opportunity, to look for that certain spark that normally illuminated in his eyes when he thought of something that normally ended up with her being flustered by the end of it.

But at first, nothing happened, just a stalemate between the two as each tried to decipher the others motives. Finally, that familiar spark flashed in the corner of his golden eyes, and Kagome knew she had to brace herself for what he had in store. And, as predicted, he slowly tugged her down, so that she was just sitting on his lap, facing him, cheeks crimson while he clasped her hand in his. He got a bit closer to her, smelled her scent and the felt the way she trembled unconsciously to the proximity, and reveled in the feel of her skin against his hand.

What was he doing? He didn't know why he felt compelled to be even closer to the human girl, let alone set off all of her alarms and make her thing _something_ was going to happen.

But, as it was, he was just too cowardly for his own good, and released her hands. Embarrassed, but not one to admit it, he looked away and said, "I will help you first thing tomorrow with your photographs, so you might want to get your supplies now."

Kagome, knowing he was looking for an out, and she grateful he presented her with one, vigorously nodded her head and dropped into the well. When she returned, a camera stand and a few extra batteries with her, the taiyoukai wasn't there. She could feel the lingering sense of his youki, washed away by the wind, and if she had to guess he took off as soon as she left this era.

Sighing, she packed up her belongings and headed toward Kaede's village, wondering what he was up to, and how she could possibly turn the tables.


	8. Photo Shoot

* * *

**_Photograph

* * *

_**

The next morning, Kagome got herself up extra early, already assembling her miko clothes Sesshoumaru had suggested she wear. She had normal red hakama pants, a white hoari, a pair of geta shoes with white socks, a tatami mat for her to ly on, and an assortment of charms she borrowed from the older miko, and even took up the liberty of styling her hair up in a loose ponytail for a change. She also brought along her tripod from home, in case he got tired of holding the camera for her. She figured the demon lord would be pleased with her efforts, but she seemed to think that maybe he'd feel more wary around her now that she was dressed in full miko uniform.

'_That's just stupid,_' she berated herself, gathering up her belongings and making sure her friends were still sound asleep in the hut. '_I can't believe I even thought of something so ridiculous!_'

When he said he'd meet her this morning, she figured he must have been referring to the God Tree again, so, hitching up her hakama pants and trying to get used to the unusual shoes, she started the journey to the well, making sure to keep a firm guard. The sun was just beginning to crest over the east hills, while over by the village it was still shaded with darkness. It wouldn't be completely light out until mid-noon, and by then, she would have finished up the photo shoot with the taiyoukai.

The woods were eerily quiet, giving Kagome the sense that something was amiss, but knowing she didn't feel a single entity nearby, discarded the frivolous thought and continued on. The geta shoes were becoming quite a burden for the young miko, for places she never thought could have a blister started to burn and itch. The socks weren't helping her, either, only furthering the process by making the journey uncomfortable. '_Should have brought my normal shoes,_' Kagome thought angrily, knowing she was close to her destination anyways.

Five minutes later, she appeared in the thin woods that lead right to the well, and, just as promised, the demon lord was meditating not too far away from it, looking tranquil and undaunted. She knew for sure he knew she was there, but, yet, he didn't stir. Once in a blue moon you could see the normally enigmatic demon lord of the western lands relaxing, so, creeping by, Kagome soaked in as much as she could before being verbally ratted out.

She managed to make it out of the woods when Sesshoumaru decided to rouse from his meditative state. He stood and greeted her, appraising her with his eyes, which, for some reason to her, seemed more intimate than him actually touching her.

"You look like a real miko now," was what his comment was.

Kagome just blinked. "And I didn't before?"

"Not with your foreign clothing and ridiculously short skirts."

"Point," she sulked. She motioned to the clearing. "So, do you want to start now?"

The taiyoukai sniffed. "You want to take pictures here?"

"Yeah, where else?"

Sesshoumaru gave her a peculiar look; started to stalk off.

"Hey!" Kagome cried, scrambling to catch up with him. "Where are you going!?"

He didn't even spare her a glance, or offer to carry her items. "Do a place much more suited than here."

"But--"

"Your boss probably wants something that is new. He has already seen this area, I have one that is a lot better for what we are going to do."

"Oh" was what came out of Kagome's mouth as she followed behind him, curious as to where he was leading her. "So, where are we going?"

"You shall see."

Frowning, the taiyoukai continued to lead her through the thick forest, keeping apart from her about five feet, which she found strange. Normally, the demon lord walked beside her, whether he was guiding her to a destination or not. Him walking in front of her gave her the impression that he wanted to prove his superiority by taking the lead, which she found quite disturbing.

'_I wonder what his problem is._' She thought as they passed yet another large clearing. '_And where could he possibly be taking me? I've seen dozens of clearings already, but he hasn't even glanced at one!_'

"Sesshoumaru!" Kagome called, hoping he wouldn't ignore her.

"Yes?

Pleased, she tried to catch her breath. "Where are we going?"

"Do you have that object that doesn't require your hold on the camera?"

Miffed he blatantly ignored her question, Kagome said, "You mean the tripod? Sure I have it. Why?"

"You shall see soon enough."

Kagome exhaled, started walking a lot faster so she was directly behind him, his silver hair tickling her face. "Where are we going?" she repeated for the third time.

"Why do you keep insisting that you know?" he asked.

Kagome frowned, kept walking, eyes down. "Stop answering a question with a question."

She could've sworn he smirked. "Would you rather a riddle?"

The miko's cheeks puffed in indignation. "No! Just answer me!"

"The people who normally wait have a tendency to have good things bestowed upon them."

"Yeah, well, those who wait normally have a tendency to not get what they want because someone took it before them."

Sesshoumaru made a small noise in front of her she looks as a laugh. To cover it up, he mentioned something about the location not being too far away, and she simply rolled her eyes and murmured, "Spectacular."

Without her knowing, the taiyoukai smirked and continued on, until, five minutes later, he paused and she bumped into his back. Stumbling, Kagome untangled herself from the silver mess and looked up, questioning silently why he had stopped.

"We are here," was what he said. Kagome looked about, but found nothing intriguing about being surrounded by millions of trees on a very narrow dirt pathway that looked like it was close to being abandoned.

"Where? I don't see anything."

Sesshoumaru took a hold of her arm gently, and started to tug her along, while Kagome fought to keep the rising butterflies at bay. His hand was surprisingly warm, much to her previous thoughts, where she thought he must be as cold as his personality. But she found her hand scorching from the contact, whether it was from his body heat, or something else all together. They continued further, Sesshoumaru thwacking away branches to clear a path through, making sure he kept a tight grip on the young girl's wrist.

When Kagome emerged from the bushes and stood in the clearing, her mouth was embarrassingly low and her eyes wide. She hadn't expected _anything_ like this! The entire space itself was about as big as three of her houses put together end to end, and, even more exciting, there was a small drop off that lead to a crystal clear pond that flowed in a river, above it, keeping it moist, was a mini waterfall that sparkled in the dim sunlight.

"Wow," she awed, setting down her supplies to venture into the clearing. "This is amazing."

"I thought it would accommodate our needs."

Kagome turned toward him, surprised to see that he hadn't moved from his spot near the woods, and cocked her head. "Why do we need so much space for?"

Something passed between his eyes, that look of mischief that she doubted he was even aware of, and it was then that Kagome knew that the true surprise wasn't the massive clearing at all. He had something else planned, as to what, she was already trying to figure it out.

"Stand where I am, and do not move." He commanded as he started toward her in long strides, encouraging her forward with a light tap on the back as he passed her. Kagome did as bade and clambered to the other side, keeping sure that her supplies were in eyesight, and that they wouldn't be harmed by whatever he had planned. Remembering the tripod, she unfolded it and set the camera on top, facing the clearing, believing he first wanted a picture of himself. She aimed it directly at his form, waited until he stopped directly in the middle to take the picture, but was stopped when his hand came up.

"Not yet, wait."

Curious, Kagome stood upright and watched the taiyoukai, saw the slight indication that he was breathing slow and heavily, and that his eyes were closed. Was he meditating? Mentally preparing for something? What? She was growing quite impatient, when a sudden powerful blast of youki almost had her falling to her feet. He didn't apologize, and the onslaught of energy never ceased, if only seemed to intensify with every second. Kagome fought with the invisible energy, and willed her own miko powers to form a brief shield around herself, that barely kept out the leaking energy but prevented the force of it from slamming into her face and burning her flesh.

Sesshoumaru's youki was metastasizing, so much that she could visibly see it pooled around his feet and ensconcing his form. From the middle of the clearing she saw his face twitch, and then lengthen, into the familiar face of the dog demon he was from a few days ago. His snout continued to grow, silver was his face now, his eyes ruby red, while his form seemed to shudder from the sheer force of his own energy, until the fog of energy erupted into a huge explosion that covered his entire form. Kagome gripped onto the grass and held her shield, though it was started to crack, and waited until the clouds disappeared and he was done his transformation.

As the clouds started to roll away, and the youki dispersed, there stood the mighty taiyoukai of the west, in his full demon form, staring straight at her. Kagome only recalled seeing his true form once, back at the tomb of Inu Taishou, and how impressive he had been. He wasn't any less impressive as of now, just a leg short, and breathing with death and destruction. Not only was she starting to quake at the size, but the way his eyes were fixated on her as if she was a piece of meat unsettled her greatly.

The mighty dog jerked his head, signaling he wanted her closer, and looked at the camera. She took a moment to process it, and figured he wanted her to take a picture of the both of them. Getting to her feet, letting her barrier fade, she adjusted the lens to point away from his body enough that it captured the entirety of him, and set the timer for thirty seconds. Hesitantly, she started to walk forward, remembered she had only a sparse amount of time, and picked up the pace, to stand underneath his jaw and by his paw. Temptation compelled her to run her fingers through the soft looking silver coat, but, remembering the flash of the camera was going to go off soon, fixed her face toward it and gave a toothless smile.

When the camera was finished taking the picture, she started to walk toward it, but a rumble stopped her cold. She turned, smiled nervously. "What?" she asked. Knowing he couldn't speak, she waited for him to commence the charades, but was surprised when he beckoned her over again. Cautiously, she backed up toward him, and saw by the way his eyes were looking at her that he wanted her to place her hand on his paw. She wasn't sure as to how she might have known this, but when she started to trail her fingers through the soft silver tresses, she was shocked to hear his voice.

"Are you afraid?"

Sharply, she looked up, but saw she couldn't quite discern his expression. She shook her head. "No. How can I hear you though?"

"As long as you keep your hand on me, I can communicate with you. My father did it with many of his allies and battle comarades."

"Makes sense," she murmured. "What do you want me to do? Take more pictures?"

He didn't bother to speak, just nodded his massive head. "All right then," Kagome said, and started toward the camera. When she got to it, secretly, she peeked at the last picture, found it quite remarkable, and set the self timer to go off in a minute. Jogging back, she placed her hand on his leg. "What do you suggest we do?"

Sesshoumaru ran his tongue over his teeth, and settled down on the ground. "Climb on top." Was his command. Kagome didn't hesitate this time, and crawled up his leg and onto the curve in his shoulder, gripping his fur for support. "I'm going to get closer. Hang on." He suddenly sprang to his feet, and trotted toward the camera, careful not to let her slip off of him. He perched right in front of the camera, slightly tipped his head down, and told her to pose. Feeling creative, Kagome unlatched one of her hands from his fur and pumped it in the air, and smiled a very genuine one.

The thought that went through her mind the moment the picture was taken was, '_How could I _not_ smile when I'm on top of a giant dog!?_'

They spent the entire morning and afternoon taking shots, and, half way through the process, Sesshoumaru had transformed back into his human state to take solitary pictures of her. Kagome was rather shocked to see that each photo he took of her seemed to be on par with a professional. '_Must have gotten it from me,_' she joked internally, and saw that he was beginning to pack up as the sun started to reach its zenith above them.

"Done for the day?" she asked from across the clearing, clambering to her feet.

"For today, yes." She could clearly see the strain in his movements from transforming, whether he tried to hide it or not. Fatigue must be a real bummer after being in such a huge body for so long, not to mention how much energy he used just to get there. She remembered he never resorted to that state unless it was absolutely needed, and, just by showing her again for such a trivial matter, meant that he trusted her and was comfortable.

'_At least, that's what I'm assuming._' She internally corrected.

She helped him pack up, and both began to return toward her village. She was even surprised to see that he actually carried something. Just coming out of the woods to overlook the village, Kagome turned to him, and stopped him in his tracks. "Thank you for this. I couldn't have had better pictures if it was anyone else." She added a genuine smile, and laughed a bit, maybe at the fact that he looked in pain by her gratefulness or the sight of the village of humans. Either way, it emitted a chuckle from her.

"You are welcome." Came his stiff reply. Hurriedly, he stuffed the items into her hands and turned quickly. Yet, he didn't walk away. Just stood there, back to her, while she tried to decipher what he was up to.

"Is everything all right?" she asked, concern evident. Kagome dropped her belongings and placed a hand on his shoulder. Alarmingly quick, he spun around, captured her hands in his one, and leaned forward, so that their noses were touching, and his lips were dangerously close to hers.

"I can think of a better way to thank me." He said, heat building in her core at the possibilities.

Taking the hint, Kagome went to lean in to thank him, but a very loud, and very pissed off, voice boomed from the hill.

"Kagome! What the hell are you doing!?"

'_Inuyasha, I will kill you. I swear it._' Kagome promised, turning around, to shout. "Osuwari!"

The subjugation beads illuminated, and the hanyou was pulled down into the ground. "Sorry about that--" Kagome turned around, found the demon lord gone. '_He...he left...that little coward ran away!_' Bristling with righteous anger, Kagome pivoted on her heel back to the grumbling hybrid, and said "Osuwari!" so many times that she lost count. Until she ran out of breath, she felt so angry that she stalked off, supplies forgotten, and stormed to the village and into Kaede's hut, where she promptly ignored the ominous stares from her companions.

"Kagome-san," Miroku began softly, knowing the young miko was in a fragile state. He could hear her shouting clear across the field, and knew that Inuyasha would be picking rocks out of his mouth for years, "would you like to talk about it?"

Kagome gave him a chilling glare he backed away from. "Like how much of a jerk Inuyasha is? How he has horrible timing? And how he can't just get his nose out of my business and just get with Kikyou already!?" The girl took a measured breath. "No, I don't want to talk about it."

Shippou coward behind Sango, who seemed even fazed by the girls outburst, while Miroku shrugged off his curiosity and allowed his friend some space. Kagome was honestly sorry she was dumping this on her friends when they did nothing to impair her relationship with Sesshoumaru, but she couldn't help it -- it was better than going back to sit Inuyasha some more.

No, she'd take care of that later.


	9. Apology

* * *

**_Photograph

* * *

_**

That night, Inuyasha returned to the hut, Kagome's supplies she had abandoned that afternoon cradled in his hand, opting for an apology. He sort of felt bad, really -- she only ever sat him so much when she was really furious with him, and even when she was normally it wasn't much of a big deal, just a big over reaction for the miko. But he had saw the raw hurt in her eyes when he crashed into his half brother and Kagome, and knew that maybe snooping into her business wasn't in his future plans, and, quite possibly, he should just leave the girl alone.

He stooped next to the hut, just standing outside of the door, contemplating as to what exactly say. He wasn't exactly a pro at apologies, and never really took the time to apologize for something anyways, but when it came down to Kagome's feelings he found that maybe it was the right thing to do the 'mature' act and make the girl feel better. Inuyasha could hear her soft breathing, along with everyone else's heavy ones, signaling she wasn't quite asleep just yet.

Inuyasha gently brushed past the mat and saw her form to the right. Making sure not to wake the others -- just the thought of everyone else hearing his apology sickened him -- he tiptoed over to the miko and crouched down by her form, saw her eyes open and glowering at him.

"Hey," he said, just lightly shaking her shoulder, "lemme talk to you. Come outside."

Kagome stuck her face in the pillow and shrugged off his hand. "Leave me alone." She mumbled.

Sighing, the hanyou shook her again. "Come on, Kagome, I'm sorry, all right? Just...I don't want anyone else to hear."

"Yeah, don't let your pride get in the way," she retorted scornfully, facing completely away from him now.

"Kagome, you know I'm not good at apologies, and sometimes I do stupid things,"

"Sometimes?"

He rolled his eyes. "More often than not. But I'm really sorry. I mean...I didn't know you were actually serious with..."

Kagome turned sharply, brown eyes probing his face. "How could you not know?" She looked away then, and bit her lip nervously. "Then again...I didn't know either until recent..."

Inuyasha sat down beside her, aware that everyone's breathing had stilled and was being controlled, but at the moment, he didn't really seemed to care. "So...you and my brother, huh? What's so great about him?" He huffed, but she didn't answer. "Kagome?"

"Inuyasha...I...just don't know, okay? I just know that there is something..."

The hanyou nodded his head sagely, and looked at her with his yellow eyes. "I won't question further." He took a deep breath. "And...I won't meddle in your business anymore. It's just...I don't trust my brother. And I don't know how you do."

"He hasn't given me a reason not to trust him," she lied, hoping he didn't catch it.

If he did catch the lie, he didn't give any indication. "Yeah, you say that now." Inuyasha shook his head, still not able to fathom the way Kagome could handle his older brother. "But some time soon...he might turn on you, Kagome."

"I know, Inuyasha, but I don't think so." The miko adjusted herself in her sheets, pulled them closer to her. "He's...just different is all. A good different. And I'm getting used to it." Her eyes seemed to cloud over just then. "And you can have your Kikyou."

Inuyasha openly cringed. Uncomfortably, he began to rub the back of his neck. "Y-yeah. I guess I can..." Kagome thought he didn't know he could see the redness crawl into his face and neck.

She leaned over and gave him a kiss on the forehead. "Thank you, Inuyasha."

Becoming even redder, the hanyou scoffed and tried to act as though he was above such petty gratitude, but Kagome knew he was just glad to have her on his side again. Kagome settled back into her cot, secretly thanked Inuyasha in her head again, and slipped back into sleep.

The next morning, when Kagome woke up, she was surprised to see that her tripod and camera was missing. She could have sworn Inuyasha had dropped it off in the doorway when he came into the hut the previous night. Confused, she sat up and made sure she was decent, looked around to see that everyone wasn't present. Pursing her lips, the miko stood and brushed past the matt, to see the sun shining brightly and the sun clear. In the distance, she heard an echoing, "Cheese!" and turned.

Sango was holding the tripod while taking a picture of Shippou dancing in the air with his chizuru attack activated. The taijiya was busy keeping the kistune accupied while Inuyasha and Miroku stood on the sidelines, waiting for their turns. They seemed to not know of Kagome's presence, but she kept behind, watching, thinking her friends childish but at the same time enjoyably entertaining.

Miroku stood, hand held over his right palm, the beads that held his Kazanna, and when he revealed the mighty black hole Sango was sure to snap the picture quickly. The monk quickly wrapped up his dangerous hand, and handed the stage over to the hanyou. Inuyasha stepped up, pulled out his Tetsusaiga, and quickly executed his Kaze no Kizu in mid-air, while Sango snapped the photo.

"Hey!" Kagome called, rushing up to them once the powerful swipes of yellow had dissipated in the air. "What're you guys doing?"

Miroku smiled. "We figured since you and Sesshoumaru-sama enjoy taking such photos we should do the same, too. Hope you don't mind we borrowed your camera."

Kagome shook her head, enthused they had conceded with her strange relationship with the taiyoukai. "Not at all. Do you have some good shots?"

"Oh yeah!" Shippou exclaimed, casting his fire. "My pictures are awesome Kagome-chan!"

As they began to crowd around the camera, a presence stirred in the air that caught everyone's attention. Inuyasha sniffed the air, refrained from cringing, and pointed toward the woods. "My onii-san is here, Kagome. I think he wants you."

Kagome nodded, and waved to her friends, following the trail of Sesshoumaru's youki. She found him standing in the first layer of thin pine, eyes locked on hers fiercely.

"Come." Was all he said, turning around, beckoning her with one finger.

Kagome took a hesitant look back before catching up to his disappearing form.


	10. Memory

_A/N: This is the last installment for _Photograph_ and I think I should rejoice that I finally finished a fanfiction! Review please because I honestly want to hear your opinions on this new piece.

* * *

**Photograph

* * *

**_

As the taiyoukai lead her into the dense forest, Kagome began to wonder what he might be up to. It was unusual that he'd seek her out and demand her company so unannounced, so she began to think something was awry and that quite possibly she was in for a shock. He didn't stop walking for a full hour before they reached their destination, and when they came to the sparse area where the trees didn't crowd around in a small patch of grass Sesshoumaru stopped and faced her.

"I have a question," he said as he pulled out his own camera from his haori, pointing to a random photo. "Why do you take pictures?"

Kagome heard it before, but tried not to sound snappish, and opted for another one. "Well, I told you it's my life. But there is another reason, too."

The taiyoukai's silence told her he was waiting for her to continue.

Looking away shyly, Kagome scoffed her heels on the grass. "When my father died when I was really young, I started taking pictures, hoping I could capture the life he can't see now." She shook her head vigorously, turning away from the demon lord, willing herself not to cry. "It's a stupid reason, really. It's just...I hoped he would be able to see them in the after life. So much has changed since he past away."

She was suddenly aware of the close quarters with the taiyoukai when she felt his hot breath on her neck, barely centimeters away from the tender flesh. "It's not a stupid reason," he said, letting her know he was really close to her. "I think that's a better one than your other reason."

"But both are equally good reasons," she said in reply, hoping she didn't anger him. Or worse; encourage him.

His hand came to rest on her shoulder, and slowly traced a path down with his claw.

"But your first reason is of selfish concerns," he said in a heated voice that almost had her agreeing with him.

Kagome regained some of her composure and whirled around to face him, staring straight into his amber orbs which seemed to be illuminated by a hidden emotion. "How is it a selfish reason?" she asked, aware that she was a little breathless and lightheaded while he continued to stare at her like she was the most important thing in the world.

His breath mingled with hers, and she could taste him on her tongue, which seemed to erupt butterflies and cause a tight knot in her stomach to coil.

"Your second reason is more understanding because you're doing it for your deceased father." Sesshoumaru got closer, leaning in, nose barely touching hers, eyes piercing through hers. "Your first is solely for you."

"A-am I not allowed to have something for just me?" she countered, trying to remain undaunted by his proximity, but the shivering of her arms and shortened breath proved likewise.

Sesshoumaru's arm came up to cup her cheek, lightly rubbing the pad of his thumb along her jawline. Kagome's breath hitched and her eyes fluttered for a second. Sesshoumaru smiled. "It is not as though you are not allowed to have something for yourself," he replied, continuing to stroke her cheek until it became akin to a caress. He could feel the tripping of her heart and the pulse fluttering against his fingertips as he did this. "Don't you think it would be more satisfying to do something for someone...together?"

Not quite comprehending because of his consistent attention on her neck, Kagome nodded her head. "W-well y-yeah. I guess. But it's just---"

"You want something just to yourself. You don't want infringement from someone else, you just want your own thing so you can be yourself with it. Having another person there with you will upset this balance and it will not feel the same." Slowly, almost painfully, his hand slipped away. "So when you take pictures, you prefer solace so you can concentrate."

"It's also to preserve memories," Kagome said quickly. She was losing concentration fast. "I take pictures to commemorate things that are important in life, too."

"And what was it you were trying to commemorate yesterday?"

Startled, Kagome tried to form an answer, but the look Sesshoumaru gave her told her to spare her words. He started fading away in the distance, and despite his demand Kagome said, "I...was trying to remember both of us...come back...please..."

The mere thought of her actually emitting these words had her blushing furiously and whirling around so she wouldn't have to see his face. He was probably retching as of now. Was probably bursting with laughter. May be even smiling at her for her juvenile attempt at trying to get him back to her. He probably thought she was a lunatic, a complete dimwit who was just too stupid to even consider her own words before blabbing them out. He probably just thought her young and immature and naive and so she wouldn't waste his time anymore.

_'I'm not going to be rejected_,_'_ she thought determinedly, and started away from him. _'If he thinks that I'm just a young brat than fine!'_

The air stirred around her, and suddenly a hand was clasping her wrist and a body was pressing against her back. Breath hitching, Kagome allowed him to twirl her around so that her form was flush against his own, for the first time since he came to fetch her she noticed he wasn't glad in his armour. Only in his haori and hakama pants, swords even forgotten this time. She also noticed how captivating his scent was...how it was everywhere...and how the soft silken strands of his hair brushed against her skin to tickle her a bit.

"Sesshoumaru?" she asked breathlessly, wondering what the powerful taiyoukai was thinking of now.

"You want me to stay?"

She couldn't _believe_ how velvety his voice sounded from so close.

"Y-yes, please,"

"And what do you propose," he lowered his face so that she couldn't quite see his profile but so that his lips were skimming her hairline, "we do?"

Kagome felt so foggy and lightheaded that she thought she couldn't bring herself to speak. Was he honestly expecting an answer from her when he offered distractions and saying things so sensually that it made her senses enthralled? She hoped he wasn't, since she thought she may faint at any moment.

"Kagome?" he said, his breath just tickling her ear, though when she shivered it had nothing to do with it. "Are you still with me?"

Gasping, Kagome nodded her head, refraining from using her words. She was afraid they'd come out scrambled and he wouldn't know what was wrong with her. _'Hell, I don't even know what's wrong with me!'_

"That's good," he murmured, and she felt the tips of his pointed claws graze her collarbone minutely, "I didn't want to feel alone now..."

What was his motive? Why was he doing this to her? And why now of all times? Was he finally revealing his true intentions with her...? So many things flashed through Kagome's mind at less than a second. Synapses of pictures presented themselves to her from the recent pictures she'd taken with him. Had she missed something vital? Had he been trying to send a message to her? The memory of the other day popped up and had her cheeks flushing crimson.

"You are blushing," he commented, swiping the back of his hand against her forehead. "Is the heat getting to you?"

_'Oh, yes, the heat...the heat is getting to me...your head...'_

"Would you like something cold?"

_'Cold? As in an icy lake...why I think I'd--'_

Before she could finish that thought he pressed his temple to hers, and instantly that one spot began to freeze. What was he doing?

"You are cold now, right?" was what he said, lips just barely brushing against hers. Kagome didn't even think she possessed the will to affirm his question. "It's the moon on my forehead. Just as the markings on my cheeks, and wrists. Here," he brought up one of her hands and placed it on his cheek, and she could feel the coolness start to seep into her clammy hand. "And here," he clasped her wrist around his one, and again she felt the chill from the contact.

She felt her eyes slit, for the combination of hot and cold were nullifying her senses. Sesshoumaru then abruptly removed his forehead from hers and moved his lips to her neck, where he gave a small lick of his hot tongue. Kagome's legs quivered, threatening to buckle under her weight. Her eyes were wide open, and she was frozen in spot. _What was he doing!?_

"Now, I assume that is hot," he said blandly, and then nipped at her flesh. Kagome yelped, but didn't pull back. "And that was painful?" he sounded almost apologetic, but Kagome wasn't so sure...

"N-n-no," she breathed, sucking in a lung full of air when he pulled back from her neck. Surprisingly, she knew it didn't, but envoked something deep inside of her that she didn't really want to venture into.

She barely saw the smirk that grazed the pompous taiyoukai's face. He captured her hand again, lowered his face, and watched from the veil of his eyelashes her eyes roll in the back of her head. He placed a kiss at her wrist, where her pulse tripped from his actions, then started to trail soft, lingering kisses until he reached her elbow. By then Kagome was pudding, and he had the opportunity to do whatever he pleased.

"Would you like to make a memory with me?"

Too immersed in the affects he was reigning on her, she nodded her head vigorously, and Sesshoumaru leaned up and kissed her full on the mouth. Kagome felt the heat rush to her core and didn't spare any time being chaste with the demon lord. Without Kagome's consent or her knowledge, Sesshoumaru snuck his camera from the belt loop around his waist and aimed it up high, snapped the photo, and returned it to his side quickly.

Kagome stopped the kiss, knew _exactly_ what that flash was, and gave him a very hard glare.

"Delete it." She deadpanned. "Now."

Smirking, and stealing a kiss, the taiyoukai started to run away with the evidence, much to the miko's chagrin. Flustered, but at the same time unable to help the smile that pulled at her lips, Kagome chased after him, shouting at the top of her lungs, "That's not really what I had in mind!"


	11. Epilogue

_A/N: Okay, I lied, THIS is the last installment...It's short, yes, but someone wanted a sequel...and I thought this would fit. If you find it doesn't fit, drop me a line and review. _;)

* * *

_**Photograph

* * *

**_She ran after him, him keeping his pace slow so she had a fighting chance, while he had his camera tucked away into his haori so she wouldn't be able to snatch it so easily.

Kagome, panting, continued to chase him, already feeling some of her energy drain from the long run. Was he ever planning on stopping sometime soon? She supposed not, for if he were to stop she'd have an opportunity to get the object she wanted. There was just no way her friends could see that picture! It was be humiliating, not to mention Inuyasha's eyes might burn at the sight.

They were vastly becoming out of reach of the village, but it seemed that Sesshoumaru held no resolve over keeping her away from her friends this one last time. Kagome had absolutely no idea as to where he was leading her, but, oddly enough, she didn't care, held no qualms as to wherever the demon lord decided to take her. She only wished he'd actually stop for a breather every once in a while!

"Sesshoumaru!" Kagome called, trying to kick up her speed a notch so she could at least be thirty feet behind him. "Where are you taking me!?"

"You shall see," was his reply as he sped away from her view, and circled around a rather massive oak tree.

"I want that picture! Don't make me hurt you!" she gasped, couldn't help but laughing at the predicament she was in. Here she was, chasing a taiyoukai far more powerful than her, throwing meaningless threats that fell on deaf ears. But she knew he didn't care, he was more caught up in keeping her in top physical form than her wanton threats.

He stopped then, so that she could catch up, then tauntingly began to stride forward. "And how shall you hurt me, little miko?" he challenged, and Kagome could see the smirk on his features prominently in the sunlight, though his head was slightly canted toward her.

"I'll think of something," she admonished, stopping in her tracks, doubling over and heaving for mouth fulls of air. She wasn't certain how long they'd been keeping up this silly game, but it was enough that Kagome's legs were tingling and that she thought she'd topple over any second. And just as she was teetering to the side, Sesshoumaru's arm supported her around her waist.

"Now, now," he chided playfully, kissing her temple quickly, "our game is far from over. Don't pass out on me now."

"How do you expect me not to?" she breathed, chest rising up and down comically fast. For pictures sake, she tossed her head back and lay the back of her hand on her forehead, and said in what she hoped to be a sultry, despondent voice, "Oh, I have fallen! I need a big strong demon to come and sweep me off of my feet!"

And, adhering to her demands, he scooped her up close so that her face was in the crook of his neck. "I...was joking," she said, a bit shyly.

"I've exhausted you enough," he reprimanded, and started toward the direction he had been heading in since he had taken off. "Now, we are almost to our destination, do you think you can hold onto consciousness for a few moments?"

Nodding, she let her head fall on his collarbone and allowed him to carry her, her arms loosely wrapped around his neck and playing with his silver hair. He bent down, stared at her intensely for one second, then kissed her until she thought she'd spiral into complete euphoria. When he finally released her lips, she was fanning herself. "Could you at least give me a warning?" she pleaded, though secretly she enjoyed the improvised kisses. "We've only just started and already you're getting carried away."

"I am allowed to do whatever I choose with the one I decide to spend my time with." Came his smug reply.

"Wouldn't that mean it'd be the same way for me?" she questioned, eyes showing hidden desires he didn't really want to release just yet.

"Not quite," he said, bringing his face close to hers again. "Besides," he murmured, and let his breath fan her face. 'God does his breath smell good...' Kagome thought, becoming dizzy again. "You are too unstable to do much right now, might as well take advantage of your state while I can." He kissed her again, heatedly, and she knew she'd never get used to the way he envoked so much passion from her. Not that she wanted to get used to it...

When he pulled away, she was trying to get back the breath that was taken from her, but wished secretly for him to kiss her again.

As the forest started to part in front of them, the trees becoming thinner and an opening divulging before them, Kagome's eyes widened in astonishment as she took in the sight before her.

It was a field full of varies flowers and wildlife, so big it looked oddly reminiscent of the one they had been in before. Then, off in the distance, she saw a little girl plaid in a checkered kimono and a two-headed dragon, along with a very grumpy Kappa who was furiously waving his staff about in the air. He took her to see his followers, and to do what?

As he crossed the field with sudden lightning fast speed that had her stomach lurching forward, he stood in front of Rin, who offered him a toothy smile before noticing the miko perched in his arm.

"Kagome-san!" chirped Rin, who held her arms out toward the older woman. "Sesshoumaru-sama!"

Sesshoumaru allowed Kagome off, and the girls hugged. "What are you doing here, Kagome-san?" Rin asked.

"You best me on your way home!" Jaken squawked, but with one malovelent look from his master he smartly shut up.

"She is here to partake in photographs with you, Rin." Sesshoumaru answered, watching as both of the girls' faces lit up in excitement.

"Really!" Rin ran to the taiyoukai, and he dropped his camera in her hands.

"Take good care of that," he cautioned, then nodded toward Kagome, "and don't let her have it."

"Okay!" Rin ran off, already blabbering about the places that would best accommodate their impromptu 'photo shoot.'

"She'll love that," Kagome sighed, and kissed the demon lord, much to Jaken's surprise. "And you had to tell her to keep the camera away from me, didn't you?"

"Of course." He said, and smiled slightly. "Wouldn't want you deleting 'memories' now would we?"

Giving him a slight punch in the arm, Kagome set off to find the little girl so she could start their memory making.

The next morning, Kagome visited her boss with the photographs she had taken with Rin two days ago, hoping he'd be pleased by the products. Of course, if there was one thing Mr. Tsukihaku had a specialty in, it was explosive reviews and generous amounts of praise along with subtle hints of constructive criticism that helped guide her to where she was. As she slipped him a picture that was about the size of her arm of Rin balancing delicately on one toe with varies assortments of flowers stuck in her brown hair, swarmed by crickets and the rising grass, her boss simply radiated gratitude and joy.

"Oh, Kagome!" he crowed, not even bothering to pinpoint the small flaws that were in the photo, such as the discreet broadcast of the side of Kagome's thumb in one of the corners. "This little girl is simply astounding, and you photography has blown through the roof! Show me more."

Obediently, Kagome fished through her bag and removed another photograph, this time of Kagome kneeling by a tree being surrounded by dozens of blue birds that it almost seemed as though she digitally animated them into the photo. Though, to Kagome's knowledge, she was aware of Rin's little 'talent' for bird callings and soon realized that she was being swarmed by a whole flock of pretty little birds.

"And this one!" he exalted, pointing toward one of the birds perched on her shoulder. "Are all of these birds really in this photograph? Because if they aren't, you sure did one heck of a job incorporating them in this piece!"

Kagome nodded, smiling gaily, pleased that her boss was so curious. "Yes, I have a friend who is a very skilled bird caller,"

"Well, I'd like to see more of her! And what about my fellow that was clad in the uniform?"

"Oh, don't worry, I have a few," Kagome searched through her photos, picked one at random that was in Sesshoumaru's personal folder, and handed it to her boss.

Mr. Tsukihaku's brows rose to his hairline, and he whistled, in appreciation or in some other manner Kagome did not know.

"Wow," he said, letting out a chuckle, "it looks like you're closer to your co-worker than I first thought."

Flushing, Kagome asked if she could see the photo, and to her dismay it had been exactly what she was afraid of showing him. It hadn't really been intended to show her boss, but somehow it had slipped into the portfolio...

The picture contained Kagome sitting on Sesshoumaru's lap, arms hooked around his neck, while his one hand cupped the side of her cheek, both gazing into each others eyes, unaware of the picture Rin had snapped at them in that instant. But, now recalling it, she remembered printing the picture at home and blushing profusely, and stashing it away. Perhaps she accidentally stuffed it in Sesshoumaru's folder without knowing it...

"Um...that one wasn't really meant for business, sir," she said, trying to keep the nervous tone from her voice.

"But I simply adore it!"

Kagome felt like bashing her had off the desk. Of course he loved it!

"If you want, this will be on display next month at the art museum."

Perking up a bit, Kagome nibbled on her bottom lip for a full minute before deflating and nodding her head. "I would be honored, sir."

"Excellent!" He stood, and started assessing his wall that was cluttered with masterpieces known worldwide, picture in hand. He stuck his hands on his hips, and clucked his tongue. "Now to start looking for a picture frame and a place where I can hang this up on."

終わり


End file.
